Pipe screen



Aug. 4, "1942.

-w. B. HIL L PIPE SCREEN Filed Sept. 23, 1940- INVENTOR, WILLIAM B. H/LL.

ATTORNE).

Patented Aug. 4, 1942 PIPE SCREEN William B. Hill, San Francisco, Calif.

Application September 23, 1940, Serial No. 357,867

1 Claim.

The present invention relates to improvements in a pipe screen and has particular reference to a screen adapted for insertion into the bowl of a smoking pipe for screening the bowl outlet against clogging, whereby better ventilation is insured, the tobacco is made to burn more freely and the smoke is rendered more enjoyable.

A further object of the invention is to provide a manipulating means for the screen whereby the latter may be easily inserted into the pipe and positioned over the outlet, and may also be easily removed from the bowl of the pipe for cleaning both the screen and the pipe.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a screen of the character described that may be simply and easily made out of a single piece of Wire.

It is further proposed to provide a combination screen and manipulating means made of a single piece of wire.

It is further proposed to provide a screen of the character described that is suificiently fiexible to readily adjust itself to different sizes of pipes.

And finally it is proposed to provide a combination pipe screen and manipulating means that will automatically clamp itself in place against the wall of the bowl and still lend itself to ready removal by a simple withdrawal motion.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear as the specification proceeds.

The preferred form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which- Fig. 1 shows a plan View of a smoking pipe having my screen inserted therein, the free end of the pipe stem being broken away, and

Fig. 2 a vertical section taken along line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

While I have shown only the preferred form of the invention, it should be understood that various changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the claim attached hereto without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring to the drawing in detail, my screen I is shown as inserted in the bowl 2 of the pipe 3, the stem of the pipe being indicated at 4, and the bore 5 of the stem communicating with the bowl as at 6, to form a draft outlet for the latter.

My screen is preferably made of a single piece of wire formed into a spiral shown at l, the outer end of the wire being bent upward, as at 8, to rise along the wall of the bowl, and the extreme end of the wire being bent back into a horizontal plane, parallel to the plane of the spiral, and forming a curved extension 9 which follows the curve of the bowl at a higher elevation.

The wire used for the purposes of my invention may be ordinary copper wire such as is used for electric conductors but I prefer to use spring wire.

The screen is preferably made of such a size as to fit the bowl of the pipe a short distance above the pipe outlet 6 and the turns of the screen are slightly spaced so as to allow air to be readily drawn through the screen.

The curved extension is preferably made to form a curve somewhat larger than the curve of the bowl against which it is to be fitted. This necessitates a slight compression of the extension during insertion and causes the extension to expand against the wall of the bowl and to more firmly grip the inner face of the bowl. To further improve the gripping action I provide a spur ii} at the outer end of the extension. This spur projects toward the wall of the bowl and bears firmly upon the face of the bowl. If the pipe has been used and has become coated with carbon or other crust, the spur is apt to dig into the crust and thus obtain a still firmer hold.

In use the screen is inserted before filling the bowl of the pipe with tobacco. The screen will automatically find its place over the bowl outlet and will also readily adjust itself to the size of the bowl. The filling of the bowl with tobacco will probably cause the screen to slightly sag and become dished.

After the smoke is finished, the user may knock out the ashes to clean the bowl without knocking out the screen, because the latter is held rather firmly by the extension 9 and the spur I0. But manual removal of the screen is easily effected by the placing of a finger over the extension and by pulling upward against the wall of the bowl, possibly with a slight twisting movement.

I claim:

A pipe screen comprising a single piece of wire spirally wound to form a supporting surface for tobacco or the like, the turns of the wire being slightly spaced to allow smoke to be drawn therethrough, the outer end of the wire being turned upward substantially at a right angle to said surface to form an upright adapted to bear against the inside wall of the bowl of a pipe, and terminating in a substantially semi-circular extension lying in a plane substantially parallel to said surface and adapted to yieldingly bear on the inside wall of the bowl to furnish a finger hold for facilitating insertion and removal of the screen, and a spur extending outwardly from the outer end of the extension for gripping the bowl of the pipe at a point diametrically opposite the upright whereby the spur and the upright are made to brace the semi-circular extension against the wall of the bowl.

WILLIAM B. HILL. 

